Category: Cleaning & Laundry

We line-dry much of our clothing and linens to save on energy bills and lower our carbon footprint. Clothing also lasts longer when it’s not routinely beat up in a dryer.

We have a number of portable line dryers inside and out, including the old and trusty freestanding wood fold-up dryers, which are great for hanging many small things but are rather unstable with big items like heavy wet blankets.

Now, because we actually research such things, we think we’ve found a Rolls Royce of line dryers in Mrs. Pegg’s Handy Line from Australia, seen here to the left.

Mrs. Pegg’s Handy Line rates as Gimpy Friendly because it’s sturdy, light weight, easy to set up and take down, stable enough to handle wet quilts (and wet dogs blankets) and can be stored behind a door or in a closet.

Patricia Roberts, the patent holder, says she’s still using the original prototype, which is more than 10 years old and left out in the elements year-round.

The Handy Line is significantly pricier than most line dryers but we also think it’s probably a last-a-lifetime purchase.

This smart broom has bristles on one side of the head for sweeping while the other side switches pads for mopping and dusting. The pole extends to 5.5 feet and telescopes for compact storage.

We see how this broom could benefit wheelchair users and people who have trouble stretching and bending.

Eds. Note: We love good cleaning gadgets. But we can’t say they inspire us to clean. You would agree if you saw the state of our floors. Of a messy house, Phyllis Diller once said you should just walk in and cry, “Who could have done this? We have no enemies!”

Marty, who counts ironing among her hobbies, was startled when Cait recommended Oliso irons.

Cait doesn’t iron and has never owned an iron. So you know the Oliso must be unusual if it’s making Cait step near an ironing board.

Marty, who is never without a high-quality auto-shutoff iron, was immediately impressed by the ergonomics and safety features of the Oliso and the way it lifts automatically to minimize scorching when the iron stops.

Marty also was titillated by the Oliso’s “detailer” which lets the nose of the iron get deep into pockets, cuffs and around buttons. That alone is the difference between a shirt crisply ironed by a pro and one done by an amateur who concentrates only on the big wrinkles.

If the Oliso is as good as it claims, Marty’s next iron will be the Oliso TG-800 or, better yet, the TG-1000 as seen here.

Watch this video of the Oliso out on the test track.

Eds. Note: For the record, Marty’s personal ironing arsenal includes a Jiffy J-2000 and the Jiffy Esteam.

We are always designing, at least in our hearts and heads, the Ultimate Accessible Dream Home.

Our dream home’s latest feature is a Toe Kick Vaccum that eliminates bending or trying to coordinate a dust pan and broom. It would be great for anyone but fantastic for Gimpy people, even those in wheelchairs and walkers.

It requires you to have a central vacuum system, so if you are renovating or building, consider installing one. This system could actually make it fun to sweep dirt and dust bunnies - right into the wall.

Eds. Note: Our Dream Home also contains the Washlet, this bathroom, features from this in the garage.

Mop Slippers, in our opinion, have one use - reaching into places a mop can’t reach and where a Gimpy person can’t bend to wipe by hand.

Marty keeps a pair under her bathroom sink to whip out once a week — O.K., once a month, maybe — to clean around her toilet and in the corners of the bathroom.

For that, Mop Slippers are great, but don’t believe the ads that say they’ll make floor-cleaning easier. They won’t.

They’ll just make floor cleaning more hazardous, especially if you wear both of them and go sliding around. Marty wears just one when she cleans the bathroom so she can stay steady on her feet.

The ads say one size fits all - which no one should believe about ANYTHING. Marty’s mongo size 11 foot fits the Mop Slipper so those of you with dainty(er) feet still will need the maid to do your dirty work or a thick sock between you and the machine-washable Mop Slipper.

Jeff Bredenberg’s book appeals to our lazy side. Many of his tips are smart and practical and some are just plain silly but entertaining.

If you already are a Domestic God or Goddess, this book will offer little that is new. But if you are like us, always in search of ways to find more time to nap, or soak, or just stare at the horizon, you’ll find something here.

A nice gift for a lazy cleaner and a perfect gift for the young man in your life just setting up house.Learn More

Laundry is endless - always there, every day, and most often involves using stairs. Even when Cait lived in a wheel chair-accessible co-op, the laundry still was on another floor. Now Cait lives in her own house but the laundry still is down the stairs in the basement. C’est la guerre.

A laundry basket kept Cait from having a free hand for the stair rail, so she turned to IKEA, the Swedish Sanctuary, to find an answer. Every IKEA has these great, big, low-cost, strong, plastic bags with handles that you use to haul your IKEA booty around the store before check-out.

Buy one, or two, or six and give them away. They’re light, fold flat, hold an enormous amount and cost less than a buck. Use them to hold laundry on vacation or your picnic items for an afternoon.

At home, Cait easily can carry one fully folded with one hand while having her other hand free for the stair rail. They help her carry all kinds of things around the house. She’s still using the first one she bought 15 years ago and it shows little wear and tear.

The other struggle with laundry is to get heavy bottles of detergent home from the grocery store. Cait’s found All Liquid Detergent to be more concentrated than most. The concentrated All is good quality and actually does the number of loads it says it does. It also comes in an All Free version - free of dye, perfume and lower in phosphates for those with extremely sensitive skin.

Cross Click and Clack with the Two Fat Ladies and you end up with something pretty dang close to The Gimpy Girls.

Cheerfully preoccupied with gadgets, gardening, scavenged treasures, and smart design, The Gimpy Girls - Cait & Marty - point you to smart solutions for Baby Boomers, the Disabled, and The Just Plain Lazy. We’re not kidding - this site is the next best thing to those “Cheaters” that are glued to your forehead.